Chapter 89

With a thud, I placed the completely motionless Dragon King on the plain.

"Phew, it was heavy as expected."

"You have done well, Master."

Even with the support of the Wood Armor *Kongou* and the trees, it was heavy enough to make me a bit tired.

Well, I had expected it to be this heavy, so it's not a problem.

As I thought this and clapped my hands, Hestia and the others looked at me with dumbfounded faces.

"What's wrong, why do you look like that?"

"Well, it's just that... you managed to carry it..."

"Ah, in a way, it felt like you were a giant carrying a huge rock. I called for the knights just in case, but it turned out to be unnecessary..."

Ah, I see, that's why the knights were following us. Dianeya must have called them.

She seemed to be trying to help in various ways. I should have noticed it earlier, and I feel bad about that.

"Anyway, let's check the current situation. Here, we can cause a commotion without any problems, right, Dianeya?"

"Ah, yes, a little noise is fine. The evacuation is already complete."

"Got it. Then, Hestia, I understand that this thing fell because it was sick or something, but can it change into a human form?"

As it is, it takes up too much space. If it could change into a human form, it would be easier to talk.

"Hmm... I already told you, it seems to be possessed by a slime. So, unless we remove the slime, it's impossible."

"Slime, huh."

I had heard the details while walking, but how could a slime do anything to a Dragon King covered in scales?

"Ramyros is the Dragon King of *Ultimate Hardness*, but while the scales are hard, the inside is just normal flesh. Moreover, it's so laid-back that it might not have noticed being parasitized until it lost control of its body."

The scales of the Dragon King, apparently named Ramyros, were peeling off in some places.

And the peeled-off parts were covered with a jelly-like liquid.

"Is this the cause?"

"I'm not sure. So, you should ask the person themselves. The mouth can be heard a bit, it seems."

*It's not just a bit, I can talk to some extent.*

As I was talking with Hestia, Ramyros spoke in a dragon's voice.

*Is it Ramyros? Can you talk?*

*Yes, nice to meet you. I'm Ramyros Esterea. You can call me Rami or Ram, as you like, human who helped me.*

*I'm Daiti. But I didn't really help you; I just received you.*

*Even so, I feel helped. Thank you.*

The friendly tone of voice didn't convey any hostility. It seems this dragon didn't fall to attack us.

As I was about to continue the conversation, Dianeya poked me from the side.

"Ah, Daiti-sama? You're making a growling sound, probably talking, but we can't understand it. Could you speak in human language, please?"

"Ah, right. I see."

I had unconsciously continued in the dragon's language. It must have been hard to understand.

*...You can control the dragon's language?*

*How much of a monster is the guardian of the ley line...*

The knights behind us were whispering, but I ignored them as it was troublesome.

"Can you speak in human language?"

"Well... it's difficult, but I can manage this much, I think."

"That's enough. Since we've introduced ourselves, let's get to the point. Why did you get entangled with a slime and fall?"

"Well, about a year ago, I flew into an aerial dungeon, and it seems the slime came with me. I get hot easily, so the cold, slimy thing felt good... I didn't realize it was a slime."

Ramyros laughed shyly.

It seems this Dragon King had been enjoying the slimy sensation for a year. How lazy can you get?

"It got into places I couldn't reach, so I just left it alone. Before I knew it, I couldn't move my body. ...Now, I can't move my body by my own will. In fact, I'm struggling just to resist the movements."

As Ramyros said this, her tail was thumping the ground.

Looking closely, it was blowing away the knights trying to approach her.

"Is this not your will?"

"Yes, the slime around my neck is trying to drive away anything that approaches by controlling my body. I'm trying to stop it, but the tail moves on its own."

Looking at the neck as Ramyros said, a purple slime was wrapped around it like a collar.

"Ah, is this it? Can I forcibly remove it?"

When I asked Hestia, she tilted her head.

"I'm not sure. If you touch it, you might be absorbed. Also, the core of the slime has penetrated into the body, so it might be dangerous?"

Using force won't work, it seems.

This is quite troublesome. As I was thinking this,

"Hmm, then, can I solve it by teleporting just the slime?"

Dianeya approached the slime while saying this.

At that moment,

*Thud!*

The slime shot out like a needle.

"Ah!?"

"Whoa, that was close. Trees!"

I extended the arm of *Kongou* in front of Dianeya, who had collapsed.

The indentation showed that it had considerable power.

"Ah, thank you, Daiti-sama."

"Don't approach recklessly. I don't want any more trouble."

However, this slime seems to have a clear will.

Of course, it does. Otherwise, it wouldn't parasitize or react to people approaching.

*Then, that's it. If this slime has a will, I have an idea.*

I held Dianeya's hand.

"Daiti-sama? It's nice to be proactive, but I can't stand up because my legs are still weak..."

"You don't have to stand. Can you teleport me to my place?"

"Eh?"

"I have something I want to bring."

●

A minute later, I stood in front of Ramyros with the necessary items.

"Eh? What's that on your back?"

"This is, well, an item I planned to use for healing after everything is over."

"Healing... Is that, probably, a hot spring? Right?"

As Hestia said, two tree cylinders filled with hot spring water were tied to my back.

They were filled with water close to the source.

I aimed the shooting port of the armor's arm at Ramyros.

Usually, it shoots bullets, but not this time.

"Alright, let's give this lazy dragon a car wash. Water bullet, fire!"

*Splash!*

The hot spring water shot out with great force.

It was powerful enough to potentially cut through the dragon's scales along with the slime.

*!?*

The slime was startled by the impact and jumped back.

"It's off, it's off. This hot spring water seems to be effective against the slime."

"Well, it's not just off, it's being cut, you know?"

It seems the force of the water was too strong, and the slime was being cut away by the water alone.

But, whether it's being peeled off or cut, it's the same.

Thinking this, I continued washing the dragon for about ten seconds.

"Is it all off now?"

A large slime fell to the side of Ramyros.

"Good. Now, Hestia, we can just use brute force, right?"

"Yup, just pierce the magic stone that serves as the core of the slime."

*—Then, this is the end.*

My fist pierced the core of the slime in less than a second.